Man found guilty of molestation

GREENFIELD — A Crawfordsville man faces 170 years in prison after a Hancock County jury found him guilty late Tuesday of child molestation.

Michael Youngblood, 34, had an attorney representing him but did not attend the one-day trial in Hancock Circuit Court.

A warrant was issued for his arrest after the jury delivered its verdict following a two-hour deliberation. Youngblood was arrested Wednesday morning at a home, where prosecutors say a 9-year-old girl also was living.

Youngblood’s case stems from allegations dating back as far as 2009.

The case was filed last March after a girl came forward and accused Youngblood of forcing her to have sex.

Some of the crimes were alleged to have happened in the girl’s Greenfield home and at the girl’s grandmother’s home, which also was in Greenfield.

The girl told police Youngblood molested her for about two years, sometime between 2009 and 2012, according to court records.

The girl said Youngblood put a pillow over her face and then forced himself on her. She said that on several occasions, he told her that if she told anyone what had happened, she would get into trouble, court records state.

Youngblood was found guilty of four counts of child molestation. Three of those counts are Class A felonies carrying a penalty of up to 50 years, and the fourth count is a Class C felony carrying a penalty of up to 20 years.

Prosecutors say they plan to ask the judge for sentences on the counts to run consecutively. Defendants receive a sentence for each count, but those sentences often run at the same time, significantly decreasing the amount of time actually served.

That shouldn’t happen in this case, Prosecutor Brent Eaton said.

“They were each distinct and separate events,” Eaton said. “He shouldn’t get a freebie.”

Marie Castetter, Eaton’s chief deputy, was the lead prosecutor during the trial. Castetter said she was pleased with the verdict.

She pointed out that Youngblood has a lengthy criminal history including two violent crimes. He was convicted of domestic battery in 2000 and again in 2006. Other convictions include criminal mischief, operating a vehicle while intoxicated and public intoxication, she said.

“I know the victim and her family were very pleased,” she said. “I was pleased to find justice for them.”

Youngblood served about six months in jail between his arrest and the trial. He was released from custody in early November, Castetter said.

He returns to court for sentencing March 9.

Coming up

Michael Youngblood returns March 9 to Hancock Circuit Court, where he will be sentenced on four counts of child molestation. The hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. and is open to the public.